Age of the Monkey
by Beezleboss
Summary: A series of oneshots chronicling the life and times of the greatest Hokage ever: Sarutobi. Watch as he grows from an energetic young boy into a wise old man, but at the same time never losing the spirit of Konoha: The Will of the Flame.
1. Age 1: Saru

Hey guys, this is my first fic ever, so please be gentle. Only criticize if its constructive please. Anyway, I'm going to start with the easy route, and write a series of one-shots, but they will sort of follow a story line.

Enjoy.

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**Age 1: Saru**

Gazing across from atop the Hokage monument, young Sarutobi cast his eyes upon the near-virgin village of Konohagakure. It had not yet seen war; for it was the peaceful solution to a war. The mighty founder, the Shodaime Hokage, stood next to his brother, watching as the new inhabitants built their homes.

"So tell us, Saru," began the First, "What do you see?"

"I see the village that will one day look up to me as its mighty leader: The Hokage!" cried out Saru in the excitable way all youngsters do.

"Heh heh," chuckled the future-Nidaime, "You sure are motivated. But that isn't the answer we were looking for."

"It wasn't?" said Saru in a confused manner.

"No." replied the First. " What me and my brother see is the Will of the Flame."

Saru looked even more puzzled at this.

Deciding to explain to the poor boy, the water-master continued in his brother's place, "You see Saru, the Will of the Flame is what will make Konoha the greatest shinobi village ever. Every loyal citizen has it, be they civilian or ninja."

"But what is it?" the boy asked.

"It is the will to fight and protect ones family, friends and home, even against all odds; until your dying breath." the First answered.

"Like when you fought that weird guy with all those hearts to protect sensei!" said Saru, all excited again.

"Yes, just like that," the First said, smiling as he remembered saving his beloved brother. "The Will of the Flame inside me forced me to fight for my family, and look what happened. I beat him and saved one of my loved ones."

"Wow" said Saru, "So as long as I have the Will of the Flame inside me, I can become Hokage?"

"Only If you truly want to become Hokage to protect the village, and everyone in it." answered the future-Nidaime.

"Alright!!!" shouted Saru, "Then watch out, cause as soon as I become Hokage, no-one better dare mess with the Leaf; or my loved ones! That's a promise!!!" With that, the hyper-monkey ran off to tell his friends all about the "Will of the Flame."

The Shodaime and his brother smiled to themselves and thought one thing simultaneously:

_  
The leaf will sprout forever_

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Alright, I know its really short but it's meant to be sort of a series of one-shots. The next ones are going to be continuing the life of Sarutobi, as he rises to Hokage, and showing the lessons he learns and teaches.

Also, a cookie for anyone who realises who the guy with the hearts is.

Read and Review please. Any comments on my writing style will be much appreciated.

BTW: Saru means monkey. It was the First and Second's nickname for him.


	2. Age 2: Sensei

Here's the second part. Probably gonna be short too. Oh well. Life goes on.

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**Age 2: Sensei**

It was a glorious morning in Konohagakure; the kind that you only get about a dozen times in your life. The sun was shining, the birds were singing. What could be more serene?

Sadly, this fragile peace didn't last very long, for a particular earth-shaking screech shattered the morning air. It was not entirely unlike that of a succubus from the ninth layer of Hell, but, (for those who knew where it was coming from), it was a lot more frightening.

"JIRAIYA!!!" screeched the banshee, "You think it's funny to grab my ass?!! Well, come back here and I'll really give you something to laugh about!"

Yes, you guessed it. It's everyone's favourite Proto-Sannin, Tsunade. And it appears she's finally got a hold of Jiraiya, and is proceeding to "explain" to him, why exactly he shouldn't grab a lady's unmentionables.

5 minutes later, from the bloody heap that used to be a future Gama-sennin, a faint voice is heard, "…god damn it, that was SO worth it….heh heh…I'm getting better…she only broke TWO ribs today…ha ha Tsunade… Looks like I win this round…" So continued Jiraiya, until, round the corner, who should come, but his sensei, Sarutobi.

"Dum Dee Dum Dee Dum…" hummed Sarutobi happily to himself. Suddenly he stopped. "Oh, look I've stepped in something…aww…and these were my good shoes…" complained sensei. "oh, no wait…good morning Jiraiya. It appears I've stepped in you. Please, let's get moving to the training ground. I've got some things to teach you today." At the thought of learning some new super-cool jutsu, Jiraiya's wounds healed with almost divine speed, and he raced off to the team's personal training ground. Sarutobi just shook his head at the disappearing dust cloud, and made a personal memo to himself.

_I really must check with Nidaime-sensei to see if Jiraiya's family has some sort of healing bloodline limit._

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As Sarutobi arrived at the training grounds, he saw his students in their usual positions. Tsunade looked pissed at Jiraiya; Jiraiya was bouncing around eagerly, and as for Orochimaru…well…he just looked bored. "Gather round students," said Sarutobi, "I've got an important lesson to teach you today" "What is it?" said Jiraiya, almost shouted, "Are we finally gonna learn how to summon? Huh Huh? Are we? Cause I can't wait to learn how to summon something cool, like a dragon, or even better, a toad!" 

"Ha" snorted Orochimaru "A useless summon for a useless ninja"

"Oh yeah?" retaliated Jiraiya "Then what would you summon that's so great?"

" I would summon snakes," said Orochimaru, with a hint of a grin, "Just so they could eat your toads right up"

"Ach please" scoffed Jiraiya "Toads rule."

"No, snakes do"

"Toads!"

"Snakes"

"TOADS!!"

"SNAKES!!"

"RIGHT, THAT'S IT!" bellowed Tsunade, grabbing both genin's heads and banging them together like coconuts. "Shut the hell up!! You're giving me a headache!" As both of her teammates lay stunned, she added as an afterthought, "Besides, everyone knows slugs are the best summons…"

Jiraiya foolishly mumbled to himself, "…stupid Tsunade flat-chest…doesn't know anything about anything…" Sadly for him, Tsunade heard this last comment and gazed at him with a look worthy of a gorgon from the deepest pit of Hades, which reduced Jiraiya to a quivering heap, muttering something about "…all the flames I saw, and what on earth was a nine-tailed fox doing there?"

" All right students, settle down." said Sarutobi as he tried to restore order, "To answer Jiraiya's original question, no, we are not learning to summon, you have to be at least a jounin before you can earn a summoning scroll from a clan."

"Awww…." sighed Jiraiya as he kicked a stone in despair. "So are we at least gonna learn a cool jutsu?"

"No, Jiraiya," Sarutobi said, "We are not going to learn any jutsus today. What I'm going to tell you about is far more important in the long run."

His students looked at him in confusion.

He continued, "What I'm trying to say is, although you all are remarkable gennin, (Jiraiya puffed out his chest like a peacock at this praise), you lack true understanding of the Will of the Flame. And without that understanding, you cannot achieve real power."

"Sensei…" complained Jiraiya, "You already told us about the flame-thingy…back when we met you."

"Yes" Sarutobi said, "But I don't think you understand it properly. Let me ask you Jiraiya, would you be willing to lay down your life for your teammates?" He looked at his other students, "Would any of you be willing for that matter?..."

Jiraiya responded first, "But sensei, Orochi-teme's a cold bastard, and Tsunade get's angry when I touch her…It's a compliment, damn it Tsunade."

" I see…" mused Sarutobi, "And what about you Tsunade?"

Tsunade answered, "Well Orochimaru's just creepy and Jiraiya-baka's a pervert!"

"Tsk tsk," sighed Sarutobi "And what about my prize student? Orochimaru? Would you lay your life down for them?"

Orochimaru looked away and said simply, "Others slow me down. I don't need them, or anyone for that matter…"

Sarutobi hung his head.

"Well, I must say I'm very disappointed in all of you." he said in a curt tone, "You have failed to understand the Will of the Flame at all, or even where the strength of the village comes from. Teamwork is what it is. Teamwork binds us together as a family. Nothing is more important."

"But sensei…" began Tsunade.

"But nothing," Sarutobi continued, "Have you even thought about how much stronger you would be physically if you fought as a team? For example, Jiraiya could use his Swamp of the Underworld jutsu on an enemy, from where Tsunade could use her chakra-enhanced punches to finish the enemy off. Or, Orochimaru could use his ability to dislocate his body to pick up Jiraiya when he's using his Needle Armour and throw him at the enemy. So many possibilities open up if you fight as friends, not just as a genin cell."

Sarutobi watched as his students looked at each other with new expressions on their faces.

"So have you learnt anything from this talk?" he asked.

"Yes sensei." they chirped in unison.

"Good" Sarutobi said as he smiled, "Now I want you to spend the rest of our training-time now working on ways to fight together."

"Hai" the three said before running off.

Sarutobi knew in his heart that this new kinship between his students wouldn't last forever, but he hoped that, for just a few years, they would have each other as true friends and teammates. He couldn't have been more right.

As he turned to catch up with the youngsters, he smiled as he remembered his own youth, and thought one thing.

_New leaves are forever growing_

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Hey, would you look at that, it's actually an adequate length. 

Anyway, please read and review, and please, I'm mainly writing this to get reviews on my writing style, so I would greatly appreciate comments on both style and quality.


	3. Age 3: Sandaime

Here's the last part of my practice fic, _Age of the Monkey_. It's probably gonna be even worse then the other ones, cause I'm rushing so I can start a new idea of mine for a long fic.

Enjoy

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**Age 3: Sandaime**

People say your life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die. Sadly for Sarutobi, he was far to preoccupied at this moment to let his thoughts wander to memories of his life. He was justified in this however, because it is difficult enough to focus as it is in a Kage-level battle, without having the added pressure of a legendary sword stabbed through your chest, as well as having your former student's soul being dragged through your stomach.

"What are you doing old man?" spat Orochimaru. "I'm not able to move."

"So I notice you have yet to see the Fourth's greatest accomplishment." chuckled the old Kage.

"What are you blabbering about now, _sensei_?_" _Orochimaru asked, saying the title as though it gave him a disease. "Have you finally lost it?"

"No, my student. It is you who has lost." Sarutobi said with a grimace "Behold! The Death God, Shinigami! And your doom!"

For the first time, Orochimaru saw the ghostly specter behind Sarutobi. He also saw his soul, almost half out of his body at this point.

For the first time since he had left Akatsuki, Orochimaru felt an emotion he hardly knew.

_Fear  
_

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"Oro-kun" Sarutobi started "Do you know why I choose Arashi to be my successor as Hokage?"

"Don't you dare call me that!" shouted Orochimaru. "And as for that blond idiot, you chose him because he was weak and foolish, like you!"

"No Oro-kun," laughed Sandaime "He wasn't weak. If he was, he wouldn't have beaten you 10 times in a row while sparring. But what made him truly strong was the Will of the Flame-"

"Oh Kami, not this again…" interrupted Orochimaru, with a hint of exasperation in his voice. "You babbled on enough about your foolish ideologies when I was still your student, and even as you die you continue!!!"

"Let me finish." Sarutobi tried again "Arashi had the Will of the Flame. That's what caused men to follow him. That's what caused him to become the greatest shinobi Konoha has ever known. That's… (A small tear fell from Sarutobi at this point) …that's how he gave up his life to defeat the Kyuubi…"

"And yet he's dead, and I'm here!" Orochimaru proudly stated, "I turned out better without your silly "Will of the Flame."

"Oro-kun" Sarutobi said in a voice you could barely hear. "You still do not see what I mean. The Will of the Flame is in every true Konoha shinobi, and it is strongest in the Hokage. It drives us to fight to save our homes and families. It drives us to stop evil such as you. And Orochimaru…" He leant as close as he was able to towards the Snake-Sannin.

**I**

(A pebble started to rise)

**  
****HAVE**

(A rumbling was heard)

**  
****IT**

(Faint sparks surrounded the pair)

**  
TOO!!!! **

…Bellowed the Sandaime. As Sarutobi finished the last syllable, a huge vortex and maelstrom of Chakra surrounded him. However, it was not blue like normal chakra. It was not even the strange orange of the Kyuubi's chakra. It was a deep, rich, fiery, red.

"WITNESS!" shouted Sarutobi "THE TRUE WILL OF THE FLAME!!!"

Orochimaru could only look on in shock.

"Now you pay for your crimes!" said the Hokage in a voice of fierce determination. He was no longer the kindly old man, but instead the Fire Shadow, sworn to protect his home.

"No, stop!" gasped Orochimaru "Please!"

"It is too late for both of us, my foolish pupil" smiled Sarutobi "Let's go to hell together."

"**FUUIN!!!" **Sandaime shouted.

Anymore pleading Orochimaru made was ignored, as his soul was completely wrenched from his body, and swallowed by the Shinigami.

Sarutobi collapsed, the last of his life leaving his body. He smiled to himself, and now his life began to flash before him. His thoughts stopped on two particular blonds. As his vision faded he thought happily how he would soon see the one, and as for the other, he thought one final thing…

_The leaf will never wither… _

…_under the protection of the future Hokage…_

…_Uzumaki Naruto._

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Yeah, yeah I know. This part is completely different to canon, but I couldn't get it out of my head. Anyway, this was a practice fic, so please leave reviews and advice.

I'm gonna get started on some long stories now.

Cheers for now.

Your friendly neighbourhood Demon-Lord

_Beelzeboss _


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